Alone?
by pineapple dreamer
Summary: A very bad day leaves Neal feeling as though he has no one to trust in the world. No slash. I do not own any of these characters.
1. Chapter 1

It was a beautiful cool night in New York City but Neal Caffrey hardly noticed this as he slowly trudged into June's lovely home. He was happy to find the downstairs empty as he was in no mood to socialize. He shut the door to his apartment with a relieved sigh and leaned against it to rest for just a moment.

Neal was beyond exhausted and aching from head to toe. With all the energy he could muster he moved from his position against the door and headed to his mirror. His appearance shocked him a bit. He looked so pale and tired but the worst part was the dried blood smeared down the side of his face.

The sight of all the blood coupled with the horrible aching in his head had him running to the bathroom, expelling everything he had eaten that day. When he had finished he was almost in tears. He was sure that a few of his ribs had been at least cracked and the pain from getting sick was almost unbearable.

Neal remained on the floor until he was confident he could stand without falling over. He quickly began washing the blood off of his face, finding the gash near his temple and bandaging it. After swallowing 3 acetaminophen he left the room. He desperately wanted to change out of his torn, dirty clothes.

As he slowly changed into his pajamas he assessed his battered chest and back. Bruises marred his ivory skin, most of them boot shaped. He shuddered as memories assaulted his poor head. The need to vomit almost took him again but he tried to calm himself as best as he could, not wanting a repeat performance of before.

Neal slowly climbed into bed, not wanting to jostle his head or ribs. He knew he probably should have gone to the hospital to check for concussion, or even broken ribs but he wanted to be alone and try to process everything that had happened that day. Knowing he would never fall asleep unless the pills started working, he let thoughts of the day sweep over him.

_Neal's day had started with much too loud knocking that jarred him from the most peaceful sleep he had gotten in a long while. He stumbled as quickly as possible to his door to find an irate Peter waiting for him._

_It didn't take Neal long to realize that he had overslept. He tried to apologize but Peter was in no mood to listen. Peter gave him five minutes to get ready so five minutes later he found himself in Peter's car, trying not to worry that Peter was glaring at Neal more than watching the road._

_He tuned out most of what Peter said on the ride to the FBI but it was grating on him. Was Peter so perfect that he had never once overslept? It wasn't like this was a common occurrence for Neal. _

_The rest of the agents couldn't hide their smirks as Neal walked into the briefing room. Neal knew that he looked quite disheveled. He had barely had time to dress so he had to let his hair go. He couldn't help but feel a little bit hurt that everyone else was taking pleasure in his rotten morning._

_After a short meeting Peter sent Neal to his desk with a mound of paperwork to finish up from their last case. Peter seemed to enjoy making Neal into his personal secretary at times. Paperwork bored Neal to tears but he always tried to keep a positive attitude considering he would still be in prison if not for Peter._

_By the time noon rolled around Neal was starving. He had not eaten breakfast so he was looking forward to getting some lunch. He stood up from his desk and started heading towards Peter's office._

_He quickly noticed that it was empty. Apparently Peter's bad mood with Neal had not let up as he had obviously ditched him for lunch. _

_Neal almost laughed out loud at himself. Why was he so upset about this? He and Peter were acting like a couple of school age children. He glued a smile to his face and made his way to a deli on the corner. He felt much better after getting some food and went back to the office with an improved attitude._

_He noticed an air of excitement as he entered the office. Something was going down and he couldn't help but feel a bit excited himself as he was very tired of paperwork. He walked up to Peter with a big smile and said, "Where are we headed parter?"_

_Peter barely glanced at him as he said, "You're headed back to your desk to finish up those papers I gave you. We don't need you on this."_

"_We don't need him on anything really," a vaguely familiar voice sneered. It was Det. Ruiz who had shown Neal nothing but dislike from the first day they met. _

"_Finish that paperwork before you leave tonight," Peter said as he and the rest of the team pushed past Neal. _

_Neal stood in the abandoned office seething with anger. He could handle any snide remarks that Ruiz made but what was with Peter not even defending him? Did Peter agree that Neal was not needed?_

_Neal decided that maybe Peter was having a bad day as well, but Neal was beginning to wish he had never left his apartment that morning. Negativity seemed to be pouring in from all sides._

_Neal sighed in disgust as looked at the work still piled on his desk. By the time he had finished with it all it was 9pm. Peter had come to the office a few hours earlier to pick up something but he hadn't spared a word for Neal. He had left with a spring in his step while Neal trudged on. Perhaps Peter would be happier tomorrow since he obviously got to spend the evening with his wife for once._

_Neal's back was aching from sitting in a chair for so long that day so he decided to walk home instead of taking a cab. It was a bit of a trek but it would work out the kinks. He was about to start his walk when a uniform pulled up beside him and told him he'd be escorting him home. Of course, Neal thought, there was no way Peter would allow him to walk outside of his two mile radius._

_Neal was starving again so he asked the officer to drop him at a Chinese restaurant that was within his two mile radius. After a solitary meal in which he dwelled on what a crappy day it had been he started walking home at a leisurely pace._

_He was taking a somewhat deserted path back to June's and was just beginning to realize that it was a bit too dark down the street. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and decided to quicken his pace. He was considering turning around and taking a more lighted path home when he suddenly heard loud drunken voices nearby._

_A group of men with indistinguishable features had just left a rundown house Neal was currently walking in front of. The darkness would have made them hard to notice if he hadn't seen them walk out the door. They certainly noticed Neal rather quickly however._

"_Hey...look at rich boy over here," one of them yelled while the others started laughing._

_Neal knew how to defend himself in a fight, but only if the fight was fair. He had no chance against the five men who were suddenly all around him. "What do you want?" he asked with as much force as he could._

_One of the goons stood directly in front of Neal and said, "How bout a little payment for letting you walk through here?"_

_Neal gave him his wallet which had about five dollars in it. Neal was too smart to keep much in there. _

"_You think I'm an idiot kid? Give me everything you got right now or I'll take it from ya myself." The man was standing much too close and his rancid breath made it hard for Neal not to gag._

_Neal put his hands up complacently, "I promise you that's all I've got on me.."_

_After that it was almost complete chaos. Neal felt his arms being tightly restrained as the head goon began rummaging through his coat and his pockets. After not finding a thing he made his anger known by throwing a punch into Neal's stomach._

_Completely winded, Neal fell to the ground where he was suddenly lost in a haze of boots and fists hammering his back and chest. Neal tried to protect his head as best as he could but an intense pain shot through his skull and soon sent him into unconsciousness._

_When he awoke a few minutes later he didn't move an inch. He was terrified that his attackers could still be nearby. He lay and listened for any sign of them while trying to assess just how badly he'd been beaten. His chest felt as though it were on fire and his head was pounding relentlessly. All in all he knew it could have been much worse as the men could have easily killed him._

_He slowly sat up and the fire in his ribs had him gasping painfully. Tears sprang to his eyes as his head pounded sickeningly. He felt weak, cold and could not remember being in so much pain in his life. There was also a heaviness in his heart that he had not felt in awhile. He realized that he had no one he wanted to call. He felt utterly alone in the world as he made his slow painful walk back to June's._

Neal could not hold back the tears as the memories of his day overwhelmed him. He lay for hours trying to shut out the all the thoughts raging in his aching head before his complete exhaustion carried him into a restless sleep.

What do you think? Should I continue? I love reviews so let me know! :)


	2. Chapter 2

The shrill sound of his alarm had Neal jolting awake and it took his muddled brain a moment to remember why he was in so much pain. Very slowly he sat up willing the room stop its slow spin around him. His head was aching horribly from being vertical and every breath was causing his ribs to throb.

Neal hobbled slowly to the bathroom in search of pain relief and after swallowing a couple of pills decided he'd better take a shower. He was shocked at the state of his chest, the bruises looked even worse this morning. It felt good standing under the warm water and he scrubbed his body fiercely, trying futilely to wash away all signs of his attack.

After carefully dressing he made his way downstairs to wait for Peter. Neal had awoken with a somewhat fresh perspective and realized that Peter's behavior was rather concerning. Neal wanted desperately to trust Peter and be able to count on him as a friend. He had been sure that Peter wanted the same so he was planning to get to the bottom of Peter's odd behavior.

The small walk down the stairs left Neal winded and his headache seemed to double. He sank down into one of the dining room chairs and tried to massage some of the pain away. He was also feeling slightly dizzy. He knew he should probably just stay in bed but he didn't want to be alone with his thoughts all day. Being attacked by those men had left the usually confident man feeling quite vulnerable.

Neal was a bit surprised when he found he was being addressed by June. "Good morning Neal," she said with a smile. When she got close enough to get a good look at him she asked, "Is everything alright? You don't look well."

Neal gave her what he hoped was a charming smile, "I'm fine June, just a little tired this morning."

"Would you like to come out on the patio for some breakfast?" she asked.

The thought of food made his stomach turn. "No thank you, Peter should be by soon to pick me up."

She gave him a searching look like she knew he was hiding something but said, "Alright, try and have a nice day Neal."

He thanked her and when she was out of sight went back to rubbing his aching head. He hoped that the pills he had taken would start working soon. The pain was making it hard to form coherent thoughts.

He soon heard a sharp knock and made his way over to the door as quickly as his battered body would allow. Peter stood on the other side looking disheveled and tired. Neal's desire to know what was going on with the agent increased. "Long night?" Neal asked him.

"Something like that," Peter answered vaguely, barely looking at Neal. Peter turned back towards his car and Neal followed slowly realizing it was going to be harder than he thought getting Peter to open up. He wasn't sure he even had the strength to work on it. He clenched his teeth, not allowing a moan of pain to escape him as he got into the passenger seat.

Riding to the FBI building was not a pleasant experience for Neal. He spent the entire ride trying to quell the nausea that had attacked him as soon as the car started moving. He kept his eyes closed most of the ride and breathed slowly through his nose. He thought Peter would notice this strange behavior but the man didn't even look in his direction for the duration of the ride. Neal was grateful to get out of the car but was rather disconcerted when he realized the world still seemed to be noticeably moving around him.

Neal was shuffling towards his desk, feeling as though he'd better sit down before he fell down. He'd lost all hope that the acetaminophen he had taken was going to kick in. He was about to collapse in his chair when he heard Peter calling him towards the briefing room. All of Peter's team was already gathered there and they seemed to be waiting for him.

He smiled at them all and hoped that he looked much better than he felt. He spotted an empty chair and could not hide the sigh of relief that escaped him when he was off his feet. He had quickly learned that walking equaled intense pain for him. "What's going on?" he asked Peter.

"Looks like we could use you on this case after all. We need you to pose as a potential buyer for a painting that we believe was stolen. Really, we just need you to authenticate the painting while you're in there. Pretty straight forward, think you can handle that?" Peter asked.

"Of course," Neal said with a nod that sent sharp bolts of pain through his head and made black spots dance in front of his eyes. He couldn't help but wince at the pain as he vowed to never nod again. "When are we setting it up?"

"The seller, Mr. Walker, is expecting you at 3pm this afternoon," Peter said as he handed Neal a small file, "this is your alias, Tom Stanton, read up on it, all the details are there."

As Neal made his way back to his desk he could not help but feel a little apprehensive about what he had to do that afternoon. He knew it was one of the easiest assignments he'd ever been given but he was beginning to wonder if he'd been hurt worse than he thought. He was starting to think he was concussed; the pain, dizziness and nausea seemed to be getting worse.

He didn't want to ruin the sting operation because he wasn't up to his usual standards but he also didn't want to tell Peter that he could not do it. Peter's stony faced silence had carried over from yesterday and Neal didn't want to add to whatever else Peter seemed to be dealing with. Neal also couldn't help but be afraid that the whole thing would go terribly wrong and he'd end up as a punching bag again. Neal did not enjoy his loss of confidence and a wave of anger at the men who had beaten him crashed over him.

Neal read the file noticing that his vision seemed to be a bit blurry as well. Just add it to the list he thought bitterly. Squinting seemed to help him get through the file and he quickly memorized his cover ID. Unfortunately, reading the small file had made his head ache even worse...he didn't even know how that was possible. He gripped his head with both hands in an attempt to ease some of the pain.

Desperate for relief he reached into his desk and grabbed some aspirin. He knew it had not been long enough between doses but found that he did not care much. He grabbed a bottle of water from the break room and noticing the room was empty, sank down onto the couch. After drinking some of the water he simply sat and rested the cool bottle against his pounding head. His back and ribs were aching fiercely as well. An intense desire to lay down for just awhile came over him and he relented. It wouldn't hurt to rest for just a bit.

"Neal! Neal, come on wake up!" The distressed voice of Agent Lauren Cruz was what woke Neal. He opened his eyes and blinked at her confusedly.

"What happened?" he asked groggily.

"You tell me. Peter sent me to find you and here you are sleeping; how long have you been in here?" she asked.

Neal looked at his watch and was shocked to find he'd been out for three hours. He chose not to share that with the annoyed looking agent. "Just a few minutes," he lied coolly.

"It took me forever to wake you. I was starting to get a little concerned," Agent Cruz admitted.

Neal slowly sat up noticing that he still felt completely lousy. "Sorry about that, didn't sleep much last night. You said Peter's looking for me?" he asked with his voice still heavy with sleep.

"Yes, he's ready to go," she said looking expectantly at Neal.

Neal stood up much too quickly resulting in vicious pain in his ribs and head and vertigo that had him dropping back to the couch with a painful thud. He could not control the moan that escaped his lips. He raised both hands to his head praying that the spinning would stop. Agent Cruz was asking him what was wrong in a much too loud voice. Neal squeezed his eyes shut and begged her to be quiet.

She dropped onto the couch next to him until he slowly got himself under control again. He looked over at her with a tired smile. "Sorry about that," he mumbled quietly.

"What happened to you Neal? Are you hurt?"

He thought about making up some lie but he didn't have the energy to think of one. He told her about the men that had attacked him. He was expecting a little bit of sympathy he realized because he was a bit shocked when he saw an angry look on her face.

"And you just went home? You didn't call Peter...or go to the hospital? Are you out of your mind?" She asked angrily. "Those men should have had charges brought against them! What were you thinking?"

Neal was starting to get angry, "I was thinking that I had just had the shit beaten out of me and I wanted to go home! And why would I have called Peter? He's obviously too wrapped up in his own personal drama to even notice anything else that's going on around him! Besides, I'm fine...just a few bruises," he added.

"Oh yes, you're the picture of perfect health. You should be at home, or at the hospital...not about to go under cover for us. I'm going to have to tell Peter about this," she added.

Neal tried to look normal through the pain that was raging through his body. "Please, just let me do my job. It's an easy assignment and I'll be just fine. I just want to help Peter get this case wrapped up. I'm worried about him and he won't talk to me while he's so distracted. Please, just let me do this."

Agent Cruz looked at him for a long moment. There was concern in her eyes and something else he could not discern. "You're no good to us dead Neal," she finally added, "don't screw this up."

_To be continued_


	3. Chapter 3

Authors note: Thank you all so much for the amazing reviews! You've inspired to keep the chapters coming fast. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

**Neal's POV**

Neal followed Agent Cruz towards the surveillance van that would take him closer to his destination. As a potential buyer of a potentially stolen painting he would of course be arriving at Mr. Walker's office by limousine. He greeted Peter with a smile and Peter returned with a curt nod.

"Let's go over the details once again," Peter said.

"I'll introduce myself to Mr. Walker as Tom Stanton, collector of rare artwork. I'll ask to see the painting and determine whether or not it's a real Degas," Neal explained noticing that Lauren was staring at him as though he might keel over at any time. He wished she would not do that.

"I'll be accompanying you as your personal assistant and accountant, Olivia Westbrook," Lauren added.

"Right, just stick to the plan and get in and out as fast as possible. If he is in possession of the real Degas we'll head in as soon as you and Lauren are clear," Peter said.

Neal settled back into his seat and tried to make himself as comfortable as possible. He quickly discovered that getting comfortable simply was not possible for him. Every position made the pain in his back or ribs worse and he felt as though someone was continuously beating his head with a bat. It seemed to pound with every heartbeat. He closed his eyes against the nausea that was making itself known once again.

Neal was feeling truly awful by the time they stopped a few blocks from Mr. Walker's office. He could feel cold sweat forming on his brow and didn't know how much longer he could control his nausea. He quickly got out of the van and stood stood breathing in the cool air, hoping it would clear his head and calm his stomach.

Lauren joined him on the sidewalk. "You're a wreck. We need confident Neal Caffrey right now, you look too clammy."

"Just give me a moment," Neal said before ducking into a nearby restaurant to use their restroom. He quickly splashed his face with cool water and though it did nothing to invigorate him he at least didn't look sweaty. He stared at his pale, tired features for only a moment before heading back to Lauren who was waiting in the limo.

"Peter will be able to hear everything that is said through this," Lauren said as she pointed to her watch.

"FBI seems to enjoy bugging watches," Neal said with a sigh. He was not looking forward to another ride so soon after the last. He squeezed his eyes shut as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

The limo driver seemed to find every pothole on the road and the jarring from hitting was about to send Neal over the edge. His head throbbed with a renewed viciousness that made his eyes water. He pressed the heel of his hand to his forehead while the other arm wrapped protectively around his waist.

When the limo stopped, Neal was out the door as fast as he could go. Lauren found him vomiting quietly in a nearby alley.

He raised his hand to motion her to stay back. He wanted to protect a little of his dignity in front of the attractive agent. "I'm okay," he finally said as he slowly got up and brushed off his clothes with his hand.

She laughed mirthlessly, "Sure Neal, whatever you say. Are you ready to meet the buyer?"

Neal just followed quietly, trying to get into the character of a confident conman; he almost found it funny that he was having to work so hard to feel like the confident con he used to be. Of course that could be because he was having trouble focusing on anything but the feeling that his head was about to crack in two allowing his brain to just fall out onto the floor. He giggled at the thought. Lauren looked at him with something close to fear.

Everything felt oddly surreal as Neal followed Lauren to the man waiting to meet them. He vaguely noticed the two large men flanking the smaller Mr. Walker. He dumbly thought about how nice it would've been to have those men looking out for him last night. Focus...Neal thought to himself. He shook his head as though to clear it and the resulting pain and light show stopped Neal in his tracks.

Pain was surrounding him, he could not see past it, could not even think. "Lauren," he said weakly, "I don't feel so good."

"Lauren?" Neal heard the small man ask, whose name he had already forgotten. "You just told me your name was Olivia. This is a setup."

Through squinted eyes Neal watched as Lauren pulled her gun on the three men while yelling for Neal to get down and for Peter to send in the cavalry. None of this made any sense to Neal and he was suddenly very concerned for Lauren. With all the strength he had left he ran towards the large man that was still in the room with no plan for what he was going to do when he got there. No plan was needed; Neal simply saw a fist approaching his face before darkness overcame him.

**Peter's POV**

Peter's heart was racing as he ran towards Mr. Walker's office. He couldn't believe that such a simple operation had already went horribly wrong. He imagined the worst as he entered the office. He saw Lauren bending over Neal, who was not moving at all. His heart went into his throat as he demanded to know what happened.

Lauren quickly explained that all three perps had escaped out the back. Peter ordered his agents to search the surrounding areas while he focused his attention on Neal.

"What happened here?" he asked as he looked at Neal who was to his relief, still breathing. There was a little blood trickling out of one of his nostrils. "Was he attacked?" he asked as he tried waking Neal up. Neal remained out cold.

Peter called for an ambulance and listened as Lauren explained what had happened. Neal was the smartest man he had ever met so it made little sense to him that Neal would lunge himself at a man twice his size for no apparent reason. He knew that she was leaving out some important details but his concern for Neal was overpowering everything else. He stared at Neal, willing him to wake up, and as he looked at the ex con he started noticing things.

Was that a partially healed cut on his temple? Why was he so very pale with dark smudges under both eyes? He looked so ill and Peter was wondering how he could not have noticed this before. "Lauren, was Neal feeling sick today? Please tell me what's going on," he said in the calmest voice he could muster.

Lauren sighed, "He swore to me that he would be fine...I was against him going from the beginning. I could tell he wasn't well but all he wanted was to help you wrap up this case."

Peter knew she was stalling because she felt guilty but he wanted some answers. "Tell me everything you know," he demanded.

"I found him sleeping in the break room this afternoon. It took me forever to even get him to wake up. He seemed to be in a lot of pain and he really didn't want to tell me what happened," she glanced at Peter who was glaring impatiently, "He said he was beaten by a group of drunks last night," she finally finished.

Whatever Peter had expected, it was certainly not this. His heart clenched painfully. Neal, who was his responsibility, had been attacked last night. It was hard for that to even sink in. How could Neal have not called him? He knew he had been distracted with his own problems but he would have never thought Neal would keep something like this from him.

He looked down at the unconscious man and realized that guilt was also creeping into his chest. Had he even looked at Neal today? He could not believe he sent his friend into a dangerous situation when he was obviously injured. He carefully brushed one of Neal's curls out of his eye noticing as he did so a lump on the side of his head. Peter's worry increased and he was grateful to see that paramedics had arrived.

Peter insisted on riding with Neal to the hospital as he was determined to not let him out of his sight until he knew that he was going to be okay. Lauren called Elizabeth and Mozzie and they were to meet everyone at the hospital. Peter told the paramedics that Neal had been beaten the night before so they would be mindful of other possible injuries. Peter could not help but gasp when he saw Neal's black and blue chest. "Oh my god Neal," he whispered.

Peter's anger was igniting again at the sight of his friend looking that way and he was determined that the men who did this would be found and arrested. Peter gritted his teeth and hoped for those mens' sakes that Neal made a full recovery.

Neal had still not regained consciousness by the time they arrived at the hospital so he was whisked away for tests and Peter was left standing in the waiting room, alone for the moment with his worry and guilt. He wasn't alone for long and was relieved when he found himself in his beautiful wife's arms.

"Peter, what happened? Is Neal alright?" she asked with concern in her eyes.

"I don't know anything yet, the doctor has not been out," Peter replied helplessly. He told Elizabeth all he knew that had happened and she was in tears once she found that Neal had been attacked.

"How could this happen? Didn't you notice that Neal was hurt?" she asked. The simple question stabbed Peter's heart painfully.

"God El, don't you think I feel bad enough?" he couldn't help but ask. "I know I let him down, I've not been able to focus on anything but us this week."

Elizabeth burst into tears, "This is all my fault," she said thickly. Peter could not bear to see his wife so upset.

"Stop that right now El, you know that none of this is your fault."

"I've caused you so much pain this week," she continued tearfully, "Even though I know that you're just as devastated as I am, I just keep adding to it. I'm so sorry Peter."

Peter found himself hardly being able to hold back his own tears. "I'm sorry Elizabeth, you'll never know how very sorry I am. I feel like I've failed you as a man, not being able to give you something you've always wanted so badly. Something I've always wanted so badly as well," he finished sadly.

Elizabeth threw her arms around him again, "We'll get through this Peter. Our love is stronger than this and I'm so sorry for making this so hard on you."

Peter gazed down at the love of his life and felt the ache in his heart lessen just a bit. "I love you too El," he said as he gently wiped the tears from her cheeks.

They were distracted by Mozzie who was looking pale and terrified at the sight of a tearful Elizabeth. "Oh my god...is Neal..." he trailed off weakly.

"He's unconscious, the doctors are running tests and will let us know how he is as soon as they can," Peter told the worried man. Mozzie visibly relaxed and took a seat in the waiting room.

After more than an hour of waiting, Peter heard, "Family of Neal Caffrey?"

He showed the doctor his badge and waited for the news.

_To be continued_


	4. Chapter 4

"Family of Neal Caffrey?"

Peter quickly got to his feet and showed the doctor his credentials. The doctor looked confused but Peter explained, "I'm sure you noticed the accessory on his ankle, he's in my custody."

"Right," the doctor nodded, "I'm Dr. Stanley, I've been taking care of Neal since he arrived. We ran a battery of tests, including a CT scan to check out his head injury."

"Is he okay?" Peter asked impatiently, he really needed to know.

"Mr. Caffrey has severe bruising all over his chest and back and we found a couple cracked ribs. The main concern right now is his head injury. You mentioned that he was attacked last evening?"

"Yes, but I don't even have all the details on that..." Peter trailed off.

"I believe he suffered a concussion last night that should have been treated immediately, now his recovery is going to take a while longer," Dr. Stanley said.

"But he is going to be okay?" Peter asked hopefully.

"Yes, Neal will be fine with time. There's been some swelling of his brain that could have been prevented if he had stayed home and rested. We're treating him with oxygen right now to make sure his brain gets what it needs but all in all he's pretty fortunate."

"Is he going to need surgery?" Peter asked with trepidation.

"I don't believe so at this time. Neal is going to need rest, and a lot of it. He'll be dealing with headaches, maybe dizzy spells and nausea for at least a week. I'm concerned that his symptoms could last longer due to the swelling and the fact that he took another hit to his head so soon after the first."

"How long could all that last?" Peter asked.

"It varies from patient to patient, but some have experienced them for months following their accident."

"Months," Peter whispered weakly, guilt slammed into him again. Neal could be suffering for months because he'd failed to notice that anything was wrong with him. "Can I see him?"

"Sure, he was showing signs of waking up earlier. Just try to keep him calm, rest is key to his recovery now. We have him medicated so he may be too out of it to talk much but if the rest of his tests come back okay he should be able to leave tomorrow," the doctor replied.

"So soon?" Peter asked worriedly.

Dr. Stanley smiled, he seemed to understand his concern. "Neal will be fine as long as he has someone with him the first couple of days in case dizziness becomes an issue for him."

"Of course he'll be fine," Elizabeth spoke up, Peter hadn't even realized she'd been listening to everything. "He'll be staying with us until he's back to his usual charming self," she said in a tone that left no room for argument. Not that Peter would have objected, he needed to know that Neal was safe and was glad that he'd be staying with them.

He and El followed the doctor to Neal's room. Neal appeared to be asleep when they entered, he looked so exhausted and pale even as he rested. Peter was surprised when two bright blue eyes met his.

"Peter?" Neal whispered groggily, "is that you?"

To Peter's immense surprise Neal started giggling. He smiled at Neal and said, "Ya buddy, it's me. They must have you on some good stuff."

Neal sighed and said, "The best, haven't felt this good in a long time."

That simple statement clenched guilt around Peter's heart even tighter. Neal was drifting back to sleep fast, probably aided by Elizabeth gently running her fingers through his hair. Peter would let Neal get the sleep that he so desperately needed and would in the meantime try to find the scumbags who had beaten him. Then, he had to find the words to apologize to Neal for letting things get so far out of hand.

* * *

Sunlight streaming through partially closed blinds is what woke Neal. His eyes were merely slits as he tried to take in his surroundings. He quickly decided that the room was much too bright for his aching head and squeezed his eyes shut. He was attempting to pull his blanket over his head when he heard an unfamiliar voice addressing him.

"Ah, you're awake."

Neal stared blearily at the woman who he assumed was a nurse. He tried to answer her but it only sounded like a groan. "Time for some pain meds?" she asked kindly.

Neal gratefully took the pills she offered him and after drinking a bit of water regained the ability to speak. "Thank you," he whispered. "How long have I been here?" Neal's mind felt like a jumbled mess. He tried to remember how he had ended up in the hospital but the last thing he remembered was

walking into the office building with Lauren, the rest was rather hazy.

"Not too long, you were brought in yesterday afternoon. How are you feeling this morning?"

"My head still hurts," he answered truthfully, "it's too bright in here," he said as his eyes drifted shut.

The nurse walked to his window and closed the blinds the rest of the way. "Just try to rest until breakfast arrives, if you eat well this morning you may be able to get out of here sooner," she said before leaving the room.

Neal drifted in and out of sleep for awhile until his bladder began protesting to the point it could no longer be ignored. Neal slowly raised the head of his bed until he was in a sitting position and looked around for the bathroom. After swinging his legs over the side of the bed Neal sat, waiting for the dizziness to subside. He was about to attempt standing when he heard a much too loud voice.

"Neal! What are you doing?" It was Elizabeth and her entrance had startled him so much that he began to topple out of his bed and would have fallen on his face if it had not been for her catching him and gently pushing him back into bed. He was surprised by her strength but suddenly found himself gasping in pain.

He lay in the bed gripping his head in his hands, praying that the pounding would lessen enough for him to assure the worried Elizabeth that he was okay. Each gasping breath sent fire through his aching chest and back and it was a few minutes before he felt able to even speak.

"I'm so sorry Neal, I didn't mean to startle you but you really shouldn't be trying to get up."

"It's okay," he replied weakly, "I was just heading to the bathroom." The thought of trying to get up again wasn't a pleasant one but he knew he had to do it.

"Let me help you over there at least," Elizabeth said as she gently helped Neal to his feet. It was awkward, leaning on her but he knew he wouldn't have made it alone. Pain and dizziness assaulted him the entire time he was on his feet and by the time he made it back to his bed he was completely exhausted.

"Thanks," he said once he was settled back in his bed. "Where's Peter?"

"He'll be here soon, he had some important paperwork to finish up. He found the men who attacked you Neal."

"He knows about that?"

"Of course he knows. He would have preferred that you had told him about it as soon as it happened. He combed the entire 2 miles radius around June's and thanks to a confidential tip he found the men who hurt you."

Neal looked stunned. Peter had spent the entire night looking for the men who had beaten him. Elizabeth seemed to know what he was thinking.

"Peter feels really awful about not noticing that you were hurt. He had to do something while you were unconscious, I think it was too hard for him to see you like that."

Neal's heart seemed to lighten at this, he wanted to talk to Peter and thank him for what he had done. He also wanted to know if Peter was okay.

A few hours later Neal was deemed well enough to be discharged. Peter arrived just in time to help get him to the Burke's house. Elizabeth filled prescriptions while Peter drove him to his home. Peter kept glancing apprehensively at Neal who's discomfort was obvious. Neal was simply trying not to throw up in Peter's car as his head throbbed and spun.

Neal was more than ready to lay down when he got to the Burke's and expected to be taken to their guest room. He was surprised when Peter led him to the couch. "I know you're tired Neal, but we really need to talk."

Neal should have expected this, he could practically feel guilt coming off the man in waves. Before Peter could even begin speaking Neal said, "Peter, this is not your fault," as he waved his hand in the direction of his battered self.

"I know it's not my fault that you were attacked Neal, but it is my fault for letting it get out of hand. I feel so stupid for not seeing what was right in front of me. It's my job to notice things that others do not," he said with disgust on his face.

Neal rubbed his aching forehead, "I know something is going on with you Peter, you haven't been yourself all week. You can trust me you know."

Peter looked at the man in front of him, who could barely hold himself upright and realized he owed it to him to tell the truth.

"You're right, there has been something on my mind for awhile. I let it consume me and I let my friend down. I'm so sorry for that," Peter added.

Neal waited patiently for Peter to continue speaking, listening was much easier than talking as his head ached relentlessly.

"El and I have been trying to start a family for awhile now. We found out two days ago that it won't be possible for us. I'm sterile," he finished with shame all over his face.

Neal didn't know what to say. The pain in Peter's eyes made his heart ache for him and Elizabeth. "I'm so sorry," he finally said. "Surely there are other options for you?"

Peter nodded, "There are some things we could try, it's just been so hard on El this week. She's been so excited these last few months, thinking about children."

Neal looked at the man sympathetically. He understood Peter distancing himself as he had, he probably would have withdrawn into himself as well.

"I'll try to do better in future and always make sure I've got my partner's back," Peter said after a few quiet moments, "As long as you promise not to hide injuries from me again," he added.

Neal agreed, "Thanks for finding those guys Peter, the city's a better place without them," he said tiredly.

"You look like you could use something for that headache," Peter said as he watched Neal slump further down on the couch. "I think I hear El now."

Neal decided he could rest just fine on the couch for awhile. Elizabeth brought his pills and water and he swallowed them quickly, ready for some relief. He slowly laid down on their couch, snuggling into the blanket Peter laid over him and sighing in relief as a cool cloth was laid on his forehead.

He looked at the pair of them and smiled. "Thank you both, for everything," he said quietly. He fell into a peaceful sleep knowing that for once, he was not alone.

_The End_

Authors note: Well, that's it. Had to put a mushy ending on there..hehehe. Hope you all enjoyed and once again, thanks for reading!


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